AzChike is a 31 year old rapper from Los Angeles, California who dropped his first couple extended plays Cult Up & Chike the Greatest almost a decade earlier preceding the My World mixtape & his full-length studio debut Rich & Ratchet under Atlantic Records. G Oh D, Chike Different, I.S.W.I.L.L. (It Sound What It Look Like), Chizzle Chizzle & Spooky Summer were all decent too but his 7th studio LP albeit Warner Records debut looks earn more respect following a couple teasers that were highly praised.

“Mercy” begins with Chike talking about not needing dirt to bury anyone & not popping out unless summoned because he’s west coast royalty whereas “Lamb Truck Keys” produced by Pharrell telling his partner to give it to him & to put her hands up if she wants a Lamborghini. “Sky Rockets” goes for a boom bap vibe thanks to Terrace Martin finding love through the smoke & fire while “God’s Favorite” talks about being too up.

Bongo gets behind the boards for the romantic “Need Your Love” yearning for his partner’s affection just before “Look Like My Mama” featuring Tyler, The Creator finds the pair trading bars with each other over a hyphy/ratchet instrumental from the latter. After the “Are You Tired Yet?” interlude, “Wonder” kicks off the 2nd half flowing over a Sounwave beat talking about all the things he thinks of whenever going to sleep while “Negative” hits us with a GNX outtake he kept for himself.

“Packed Up” embraces a trap vibe thanks to Hit-Boy talking ’bout his watch as long as time’s ticking while “Uncomfortable Conversations” maintaining his patience to get some shit off his chest. “The World is Ours” instrumentally reminds me of the Bastard era talking about throwing bands & after “Rock Bottom” talks about struggling to get his mind right, “Hateful + Ungrateful” ends No Rest for the Wicked spitting a lengthy verse regarding him feeling unappreciative.

ScHoolboy Q, Kendrick Lamar & more recently E-40 have all given AzChike the stamp of approval when they got him to make appearances for their latest full-lengths Blue Lips as well as GNX & Turning My Money Over respectively within the past 2 & a half years, but No Rest for the Wicked really elevates himself with the most consistent statement of his entire career. The production department has made some huge upgrades compared to Chike’s earlier output so he can paint vivid street imagery with only a few guests.

Score: /5

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